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Recent Stories

Videogames 101
If you haven't played a video game since Ms. Pac-Man, you probably have some catching up to do. Kurt has this quick guided tour of the state of the art.
Special Guest: Clive Thompson
Clive Thompson was ten years old when Pong was unleashed in "rec rooms" across America, and he has been a passionate gamer ever since. Thompson writes about technology and culture, and contributes regularly to Wired and New York Magazine.

Get Your Kicks on Sputnik
There was instant global awe for the Soviet satellite, just under 2 feet in diameter, which circled the earth every 96 minutes. It was the beginning of the space age, but it wasn't just a technological marvel: it had a lasting impact on American culture, language, and design. Richard Paul looks into why Sputnik has never really left our orbit.

In Orbit Over Levittown
On the evening of October 4th 1957, when David Hoffman was 13 years old, his family and all their neighbors walked outside to peer up at the night sky. Now a filmmaker, he has made a documentary called Sputnik Mania that reflects on his passion for space. Produced by Pejk Malinovski and Derek John.

Laika's Dream
A month after Sputnik went up, the Soviets launched Sputnik 2, with a very famous passenger: Laika, a mutt from the streets of Moscow. She never made it home. The writer John Haskell has this tribute, part fact and part fiction, to the canine cosmonaut.

TV's Fall Fantasy
Riding the coattails of hits like Lost and Heroes, this season's glut of TV is heavy on the fantasy -? with shows featuring vampires, ghosts, time travel, and fembots. Kurt chats with playwright and screenwriter Paul Rudnick about the supernatural zeitgeist.

Sharon Jones
Their 1960s soul sound is uncanny, but don't be fooled: Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings are making brand-new music. Jones, 51, held down a string of jobs (including as a corrections officer on New York's Riker's Island) waiting for her big break. Now it's here. Jones and the band join Kurt in the studio as they kick off a world tour.

In 1942, Aaron Copland accepted a commission to write the score for a new dance by modernist Martha Graham. Their now-legendary ballet looks at the tension between community and individualism through the story of a bride and groom in a frontier town.

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